Riders offer tips for smoother DDOT system

Jul. 14, 2013

Katherine Sadler of Detroit waits for her bus with Jesse Thompson at the Rosa Parks terminal downtown. Sadler said she would extend service times and add buses to routes. / Ryan Garza / Detroit Free Press

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Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

The Detroit Department of Transportation plans to use about $16 million in federal funds for things such as communication equipment, vehicle-location devices and security cameras for buses and terminals.

Meanwhile, DDOT withdrew several projects from the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments’ 2011-14 Transportation Improvement Program, which would have spent $14.5 million to replace buses, computer hardware and software and transit service equipment. The Transportation Improvement Program lists projects set to meet the goals for the region’s long-range transportation plan called Direction2035. DDOT officials were not available to comment on the budget changesfor the 2013 fiscal year, which started July 1.

SEMCOG’s Transportation Improvement Program Development Committee plans to vote on the changes Monday during a meeting at the SEMCOG offices at 1001 Woodward Ave.

Officials said they want to use the federal funds for transit facilities renovation, transit education and training, bus-stop shelters and signage. They also want to use the funds for services for low-income employees and elderly and disabled system users.

Some bus riders, however, say the best way to enhance service would be extending service times and providing better .

“Hire more people who care about their jobs,” said 19-year-old Detroiter Lorenzo Pope.

Pope said he often encounters drivers with bad attitudes who make his riding experience unpleasant. Other riders, such as Azikiwe Robinson of Clinton Township, said he’s had bus drivers who stopped midway through their routes to get food.

“When I come into the city, I have to be ready three hours early to go up the street,” said Robinson, 41, a box maker for Anchor Bay Packaging.

Robinson, who uses the bus to get to and from work, said he is sometimes met with air conditioning that doesn’t work, which is exacerbated during the summer months when there are more riders.

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Katherine Sadler said she would extend service times on Sunday and add buses to routes. The 63-year-old Detroit college student often heads home in the middle of the day just to catch the last bus.

“Run more regularly,” she said, while waiting for the Joy Road bus with fellow Detroiter Jesse Thompson last. “Maybe every 15 minutes. People have to wait too long. And run later. My route on Sunday doesn’t run after 6. You can’t get a bus from downtown after that.”

Darcy Kierzek said she wants more accountability for drivers to make sure the routes are actually followed. She said she wants DDOT to employ live representatives to help when route issues come up, a tactic already employed by metro Detroit transit carrier SMART.

“It’s irritating,” said Kierzek, 43, of Belleville, who was heading to a class on Detroit’s west side. “You want a person when you can’t find your bus. SMART has that.”

Some commend DDOT for its service.

“They’re on time most of the time,” said Treshon Williams, a 17-year-old Northwestern High School student. “I’ve never really had any problems.”

The only problem DDOT should be trying to fix, said Detroiter Donald Parks, is with the buses not being on time.

“If all those schedules meant something, it would change this whole system, and you’d have a whole lot more happy people as far as the transit system,” said Parks, 52, who was headed to work at Greater Grace Temple near Telegraph and W. 7 Mile. “We trust those things to get to work and get our kids to school ... wherever we’re going. And if we can’t rely on that, how is that our fault? Why should we be punished?”